Katie Keenan has been with Blackstone for 13 years (Image: Blackstone)
Blackstone on Friday named Katie Keenan chief executive and director of Blackstone Real Estate Income Trust (BREIT) and global head of its core-plus real estate strategy, replacing Wesley M. LePatner, who served in both roles before being murdered in a mass shooting in the company’s Park Avenue office building in July.
Keenan has been with Blackstone since 2012 and currently serves as global co-chief investment officer of Blackstone Real Estate Debt Strategies and chief executive of Blackstone Mortgage Trust, which trades on the New York stock exchange as BXMT.
“Thanks to the dedication of Wesley and many others, BREIT represents some of Blackstone’s finest work,” Keenan said. “Its strong performance is driven by a portfolio that is around 90 percent concentrated in sectors that are benefitting from long-term, secular megatrends, particularly data centers.”
An 11-year Blackstone veteran, LePatner was among four people killed when Shane Tamura, a former football player with mental health issues opened fire in the building, apparently mistaking it for the nearby NFL headquarters.
Ready for a Recovery
Describing BREIT as “incredibly well-positioned,” Keenan pointed to a rapid decline in new supply of properties, lower interest rates and a rebound in market transactions as positive indicators for the private trust.
Tim Johnson of Blackstone (Image: Blackstone)
As part of further remake of BREIT leadership, Blackstone named Zaneta Koplewicz, currently the trust’s head of shareholder relations, as co-president and director of the venture alongside current co-president, AJ Agarwal. Rob Harper, who had taken over as interim CEO of BREIT, will resume his long-time role as the organisation’s head of asset management.
With Keenan shifting to the BREIT role, Blackstone’s global head of real estate debt strategies, Tim Johnson, has been appointed chief executive of BXMT. In addition to leading the company’s real estate lending business, Johnson has served as chair of BXMT’s board and has played an active role in overseeing the trust for over a decade, the company said.
Having first joined Blackstone in 2011, while taking on the BXMT CEO role, Johnson will continue to serve as global head of real estate debt and as BXMT board chair. Austin Peña, currently executive vice president for investments at BXMT, has been named president and director of the vehicle, and will continue leading the company’s investment, capital allocation, and balance sheet strategy, Blackstone said.
Vote of Confidence
“The resilience demonstrated by our team in recent weeks has been nothing short of extraordinary,” said Blackstone Real Estate global co-heads Nadeem Meghji and Kathleen McCarthy. “We are fortunate to have a deep bench of talented colleagues with a relentless focus on delivering for our investors. Katie and Tim both have invaluable leadership and investing experience that we believe will continue to drive strong performance across both businesses.”
Keenan took over as global head of core-plus real estate at the time of the announcement with all other changes taking effect from 10 November.
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